WEBVTT KCCI 8 PRESENTS " HOOPS HYSTERIA" WITH IOWA'S SPORTSCASTER OF THE YEAR ANDY GARMAN. MARCH MADNESS IS TAKING OVER ST. LOUIS. AND FOR IOWA TEAMS FROM THE VALLEY, ONE ENTERS WITH A DREAM AND THE OTHER WITH A MISSION. THE DRAKE BULLDOGS ARE PLAYING SOME OF THE BEST BALL OF THE SEASON. THEY HOPE TO BE THE PARTY CRASHERS. MARCH BEGAN ON SUNDAY. THE MADNESS BEGINS WITH CONFERENCE TOURNAMENTS IN THIS STATE. FIRST UP, THE MISSOURI VALLEY CONFERENCE. THIS IS "HOOPS HYSTERIA" AND I AM ANDY GARMAN. IT IS REALLY A PARTY FOR TWO WITH EIGHT OTHER TEAMS. WICHITA STATE WINS THE CONFERENCE REGULAR SEASON CROWN AND EARNS THE #1 SEED IN ST. LOUIS. NORTHERN IOWA SPLIT WITH THE SHOCKERS, BUT UNI OPENED THE SEASON WITH A NAIL-BITING LOSS AT EVANSVILLE. THAT 2ND LOSS IS WHAT DROPS THEM TO 2ND SEED. AS YOU CAN SEE, THERE'S A PRETTY BIG DROP-OFF TO 3-SEED INDIANA STATE. THEN ILLINOIS STATE AND EVANSVILLE ROUND OUT THE TOP FIVE. TRY AS THEY MIGHT, DRAKE ONCE AGAIN FOUND ITSELF IN THE 7TH SEED POSITION, WHICH MEANS HISTORY IS NOT ON THEIR SIDE. ONLY ONE TIME HAS A TEAM THAT PLAYED ON THURSDAY EVEN MADE IT TO THE SEMIFINALS. NONE HAS EVEN WON IT ALL. THE BULLDOGS OPEN WITH 10TH SEEDED BRADLEY TOMORROW NIGHT, WITH THE WINNER EARNING A DATE WITH UNI ON FRIDAY. THE MISSOURI VALLEY CONFERENCE IS A 10-TEAM TOURNAMENT. THE TOP 6 TEAMS GET A BYE INTO THE 2ND ROUND. HERE'S HOW IT WILL PLAY OUT OFFICIALLY WITH THE BRACKETS. WICHITA STATE OPENS PLAY ON FRIDAY AGAINST THE WINNER OF MISSOURI STATE AND SOUTHERN ILLINOIS. ILLINOIS STATE AND EVANSVILLE TIP AT ABOUT 2:30. NORTHERN IOWA STARTS ITS RUN TO THE CHAMPIONSHIP AGAINST THE WINNER OF DRAKE AND BRADLEY. THAT GAME IS AT 6:00 FRIDAY. INDIANA STATE AND LOYOLA WRAP THINGS UP FRIDAY NIGHT. ALL OF THE GAMES FRIDAY AND SATURDAY ARE ON FOX SPORTS MIDWEST. ON SUNDAY, THE LAST TWO STANDING WILL BATTLE FOR THE ARCH MADNESS CROWN HERE ON KCCI. TIPOFF IN THE ARCH MADNESS CHAMPIONSHIP GAME IS AT 1:00. FOR ALL OF THEIR SUCCESS, ONE THING UNI HAS NOT DONE WELL IN RECENT YEARS IS PLAY IN ST. LOUIS. THE PANTHERS HAVE NOT WON A GAME IN THIS TOURNAMENT IN THE LAST 4 YEARS. ONE POSITIVE TO BUILD ON. THE ONLY OTHER TIME UNI WAS A 2-SEED WAS 2004, WHEN GREG MCDERMOTT'S TEAM CUT DOWN THE NETS. ANOTHER THING TO COUNT ON, BEN JACOBSON SAYS HE EXPECTS TO SEE A LOT OF PURPLE IN THE STANDS AT THE SCOTTRADE CENTER. WE WILL HAVE THE BIGGEST CROWD WE HAVE HAD IN FIVE YEARS. NO QUESTION THAT WILL HAPPEN FOR US. THE SALES TO THE DEADLINE WERE AS HIGH AS THEY HAVE BEEN. PEOPLE HAVE BEEN ASKING ABOUT IT FOR A COUPLE OF WEEKS. IT IS GREAT, IT MAKES ALL THE DIFFERENCE. AND WHY WOULDN'T THEY COME? UNI HAS HAD ONE OF THOSE SEASONS YOU DREAM OF AS A FAN. OF COURSE, IT ALWAYS HELPS TO HAVE THE BEST PLAYER IN THE LEAGUE ON YOUR TEAM. AND NORTHERN IOWA DOES. SENIOR BIG MAN SETH TUTTLE ON TUESDAY NAMED THE WINNER OF THE LARRY BIRD AWARD AS MVC PLAYER OF THE YEAR. LIGHTLY RECRUITED OUT OF WEST FORK HIGH SCHOOL IN SHEFFIELD, IOWA, SETH HAS BLOSSOMED INTO THE LEAGUE'S DOMINANT PLAYER THIS YEAR. HE LEADS UNI IN SCORING, REBOUNDING, FIELD GOAL PERCENTAGE, BLOCKED SHOTS. AND LEST YOU THINK IT'S ALL ABOUT HIM, SETH IS ALSO UNI'S LEADING ASSIST MAN. KCCI'S ERIC HANSON TOOK A JOURNEY TO TUTTLE'S HOMETOWN. WE WILL HAVE THAT A LITTLE LATER IN THE SHOW. BUT UNI IS NOT A ONE-MAN TEAM . IN FACT, THE PANTHERS ARE PRETTY DANGEROUS DOWN THE BENCH TOO. YESTERDAY, WES WASHPUN WAS NAMED 6TH MAN OF THE YEAR. THE AWARD FOR BEING THE BEST PLAYER THAT DOESN'T START FOR YOUR TEAM. WASHPUN CAME OFF THE BENCH IN ALL 30 GAMES AND ENDED UP BEING